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Crews work to take control of destructive Creek Fire amid violent Santa Ana winds

CITY NEWS SERVICE

5:30 AM, Dec 7, 2017

6:17 PM, Dec 7, 2017

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The Creek Fire burns on a hillside in the Shadow Hills neighborhood on December 5, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. Strong Santa Ana winds are rapidly pushing multiple wildfires across the region, expanding across tens of thousands of acres and destroying hundreds of homes and structures.

Mario Tama

Copyright Getty Images

SYLMAR (CNS) - Although they expect violent wind gusts, crews battling the Creek Fire in the hills above Sylmar will try to gain momentum Thursday against a wind-driven blaze that has destroyed 30 homes and threatened thousands of others.

The fire, which has scorched 12,605 acres, broke out at 3:42 a.m. Tuesday in the area of Gold Creek and Little Tujunga roads in the Kagel Canyon area. More than 1,600 firefighters and other personnel were deployed against the fire, which was 10 percent contained as of Thursday night.

Santa Ana winds gained strength Wednesday night and are expected to continue doing so Thursday. Some fire officials said they are battling "hurricane- force" winds.

Three firefighters were injured Tuesday and hospitalized in stable condition.

At least 30 homes were destroyed, about 20 of them in the Little Tujunga, Kagel Canyon and Lopez Canyon areas. The other 10 homes were within Los Angeles city limits, according to Margaret Stewart of the Los Angeles Fire Department.

Virginia Padilla, whose family owns a ranch in Sylmar, told reporters the fire killed at least 30 of the ranch's horses. Padilla said she and her family were able to get out of her home just in time Tuesday morning but were not able to take their horses with them.

Evacuation orders first issued Tuesday were affecting about 110,000 households, according to Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, who said evacuated residents would not be allowed to return home Wednesday night.

"We realize what an inconvenience this is and how traumatic this is to so many people, but we've watched fires in Northern California, we've seen through experience it's much better to err on the side of safety," Garcetti said at a Wednesday afternoon news briefing.

All Los Angeles Unified School District schools in the San Fernando Valley and some on the west side of Los Angeles -- a total of 265 district schools and charter schools -- will be closed Thursday and Friday, district officials said. A full list of closed schools was available at lausd.net.

An estimated 2,500 structures were threatened by the Creek Fire at one point, according to the U.S. Forest Service, which was fighting the blaze in a unified command with the Los Angeles city and county fire departments.

Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Ralph Terrazas warned that the battle was likely to continue until at least Friday.

The LAFD's "brush burning index" that rates the fire danger was at 296 -- "the highest number I've ever seen in my career," according to Terrazas. He said the usual threshold for extreme fire conditions is 165.

The LAPD was placed on a citywide tactical alert, which allows commanders to keep officers beyond the end of their shifts, giving them maximum flexibility in deploying resources.

As the fire burned on Tuesday, the Foothill (210) Freeway was closed in both directions between the Golden State (5) Freeway and the Glendale (2) Freeway, but the freeway had been reopened by Wednesday afternoon, according to the California Highway Patrol.

However, all westbound 210 Freeway exits from the 118 Freeway to the 5 Freeway are closed, and from Lowell Avenue to the 118 Freeway, sheriff's officials said. The eastbound 210 Freeway exits at Osborne Avenue, Wheatland Avenue, Sunland Boulevard, and La Tuna Canyon Road are also closed.

Mandatory evacuations were in place Thursday for the areas north of the 210 Freeway, from Glenoaks Boulevard to Haines Canyon Avenue, as well as south of the 210 Freeway, west of Sunland Boulevard and Stonehurst Avenue, and north of La Tuna Canyon Road.

The communities of Kagel Canyon, Lakeview Terrace, Sunland, Sylmar, Pacoima, Lopez Canyon and Shadow Hills also were under evacuation orders.

Horses and other large animals can be brought to the Hansen Dam Equestrian Center at 11127 Orcas Ave. in Sylmar and the Antelope Valley Fairgrounds at 2551 W. Avenue H, in Lancaster.

Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control officials said Wednesday night they were receiving multiple locations regarding large deceased livestock and asked owners to contact D&D Rendering Company at (323) 261-4176.

"Injured horses at our sheltering sites are improving and veterinarian care has been provided and will continue throughout this event," officials said.

Copyright 2017 Scripps Media, Inc. City News Service contributed to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.